CONTROVERSIES

A chance to explore a few of the many
contentious topics in the world of wine. I don't claim to have settled
any of these issues, but I hope these articles will at least add
something constructive to the debate.

Rescuing mineralityMinerality, a tasting term that didn't exist 30 years ago, is
now popular. But it has been criticized as being meaningless. Jamie
Goode tries to rescue this concept, with recourse to science.

Wine
tasting: subjective or objective?Jamie Goode tackles a thorny question. Most experts, when
pressed, say that wine tasting is all subjective, but they behave as
if they don't really believe this.

Interviewing
Monty Waldin: tough questions about biodynamicsBiodynamic viticulture is increasingly popular, but with its
reliance on bizarre preparations and adherence to the celestial
calendar it courts controversy. Jamie Goode interviews one of the
leading experts on the subject, and asks the tricky questions.

Rising
alcohol levels in wineAlcohol levels have been gradually
creeping up in most wine regions over recent years. Is it a problem?
And, if so, what can be done about it? Jamie Goode reports.

Pesticide
residues in wineA recent report shows seemingly alarming
levels of pesticides in wines made from conventionally farmed
grapes. Does this mean we should all switch to drinking organic
wine?

Brettanomyces:
a masterclassIt sounds a bit nerdy, but the subject of
Brettanomyces, a yeast that some people think adds complexity to red
wines, while others think is always bad, is one of the most
controversial and important topics in winemaking. Jamie Goode
attends a masterclass with winemaker Matt Thomson to find out more.

Defending
screwcapsA recent series of newspaper articles in the UK have picked up
on the idea that screwcaps may not be flawless in their performance.
Jamie Goode argues that while there's a grain of truth behind these
stories, they represent the science very badly and could mislead
consumers

Mercaptans
and other sulfur compounds in wine
Don't let the title put you off: this article is a readable,
accessible introduction to some important flavour compounds in wine,
which in the wrong place at the wrong concentrations can also be
faults

The
closures debateAn edited transcript of the 2006 Closures
debate at the London Wine Trade Fair, bringing together experts to
discuss the latest developments in wine bottle closures

AuthenticityIs it important that wine is true to type?
Should Chablis taste like Chablis? And how much can wine be
manipulated before it loses its authenticity?

The
danger of fake wineSo branded, industrialized, manufactured
wines are grabbing an increasing slice of the market: should those
of us with an interest in fine wine be worried? Yes, argues Jamie
Goode: fake wines threaten the whole industry.

The
New Zealand Screwcap InitiativeIn New Zealand, the shift to screwcaps has
taken place with startling speed: from a standing start in 2000, now
70% of this country's wines are sealed this way. Jamie Goode
investigates the official initiative designed to help producers make
this transition successfully, and to provide information on this
type of closure.

Integrity
of contentAll the time, journalists are writing
things that they don't really mean. They are giving their readers
what they think their readers want. It's the same with a lot of wine
writing. Jamie Goode tells us why he thinks readers deserve better
than this.

Reductionism:
how useful is this for understanding wine?The driving philosophy behind many
scientific advances has been reductionism - the idea that a system
is best understood by taking it apart and studying the components.
But is this approach limited for helping us understand wine?

Boring
wineA silent catastrophe is taking place on
the supermarket shelves: all wines are beginning to taste the same.
Jamie Goode investigates the rise and rise of boring wine, and
suggests some antidotes to vinous tedium.

Naturalness
in wineIt's possible to make a wine without
adding anything, but virtually no one makes wine this way, for good
reasons. Jamie Goode asks, how much manipulation is acceptable? Is
it possible or sensible to draw a line, or should anything be
allowed?

Wine
writers: lying to your readersThis is a story that weaves together two
themes: the changing UK marketplace and the way that mainstream
critics push commercial wines at the expense of more individual,
interesting offerings that are harder to find.

Adding
flavour: a new South African wine scandal?There have been reports that some South African producers have
been adding flavour chemicals to their Sauvignon Blanc. But in the
absence of names and hard evidence, should this story have ever
surfaced?

Wine:
it gets you drunkWe talk about the
varieties of flavour that wine can possess. We talk of grape
varieties, yields and oak usage. We talk about terroir, how wine can
convey a sense of place. But we fail, by and large, to discuss why
most people drink wine in the first place. It’s alcoholic and it
gets you drunk.

BrettanomycesBrettanomyces
is a common defect in wine, but controversy surrounds the subject.
Jamie Goode sifts the available data and canvasses the views of
world-famous winemakers to determine how widespread the problem is,
and whether brett can ever be a good thing.

Blind
tasting tests: compulsory for wine writers?By and large, wine
writers are a self-selected group. Their ability to taste is never
verified independently. You can have vast wine tasting experience,
but this doesn’t necessarily mean you are equipped to benefit from
it; thus even the most venerable, experienced tasters might not be
making sensible assessments about the wines they are drinking. That’s
why I think it would be a good idea to blind taste test wine
writers.

The two
cultures: how the rise of the brands is changing the face of wine
The world of wine as we know it has changed radically over the last
couple of decades, and while many of the changes have been for the
better, some are giving cause for concern. Jamie Goode introduces a
new multipart series tracing the rise of the wine brands, and asks
whether this could spell the beginning of the end for interesting,
affordable wine.

Biodynamic
wineA major multipart series focusing on this
supercharged form of organic viticulture that is increasingly
popular with many of the world's leading producers, but which has
caused a good deal of controversy among proponents of scientifically
based viticulture.

Back to
square one: the WSA musty taint surveyWith
a fierce debate ranging in the wine trade over the validity of the
Wine and Spirit Association’s research into cork taint, Jamie
Goode raises doubts over the methodology employed and asks is it
time to rip up the report and start again?

Appellations
as brands: does it work?French producers need to
regain market share lost to the new world brands, and in theory it
looks like a generic marketing attempt based around appellations is
a possible solution. How does it work in practice, though?

Wine
diversity is under threatWhat's the problem? Well, wine production is increasingly being
driven by the needs of the supermarket and high street wine buyers,
who claim that their requirements are driven by what people will
buy. There is therefore a huge commercial pressure towards bland,
‘commercial’, branded wines produced in large volumes to hit the
right price points. The diversity – and the link to geography –
that makes wine so interesting are under real threat.

Yet
more on corks: towards a balanced perspectiveWhile everyone is probably
fed up with the subject of cork taint by now, it's the issue that
won't go away. This article is an attempt to forge a balanced
position on the basis of good data—and not just anecdotal
accounts, strongly held beliefs and murky conflicting interests.

Alternative
closures for fine winesShould synthetic corks or
screwtops be used to seal wines intended for long-term ageing? Not
yet, argues Jamie Goode. We need to wait for the data.

Fighting
cork taint: are screwcaps and plastic corks the answer?
Jamie Goode analyses the results from an significant independent
study on the effectiveness of wine bottle closures. This scientific
paper, published in July 2001, has thrown up some surprising
results, and the ongoing trial it describes promises to answer the
key question of whether alternatives to cork are suitable for
long-term ageing of wine.

Chasing
the pointsJamie Goode
finds himself in a bit of dilemma about Robert Parker's ratings, and
has a close encounter with insidious influence of the point-chasing
mentality himself.

Biodynamic
wine: interview with James Millton
Biodynamics is a controversial agricultural system that's becoming
increasingly accepted in the wine world. Jamie Goode poses some
thorny questions to one of the most well known new world proponent
of these techniques.

Terroir
revisited: towards a working definition
It's hard work discussing a concept that means different things to
different people, so I thought it might be worth trying to nail down
some sort of working definition for 'terroir'. Here's my attempt!

Scoring
wines: does it measure up?The anorak turns the
spotlight on the controversial practice of assessing wines by means
of a numerical rating. More gripping than a Parker 97-pointer! (See
also: regular columnist Nick
Alabaster's article on 'Rating wines'.)